Sengkang West Bus Depot

Sengkang West Bus Depot is an upcoming bus depot bounded by Seletar West Road 1 & Seletar West Road 2. It is scheduled to be completed by 2024 (originally planned for 2023) and will be handed over to the successful tenderer of a currently-unknown bus package under the Bus Contracting Model (BCM).

Introduction

Sengkang West Bus Depot is the fifth bus depot (after Ulu Pandan Bus Depot) that LTA developed and funded, as well as the first multi-storey bus depot commissioned by LTA (not counting East Coast Integrated Depot). The depot is intended to accommodate additional buses that are being introduced over the years, as the overall bus capacity increases under the Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP) and Bus Contracting Model (BCM).

The location of Sengkang West Bus Depot was confirmed in April 2017 through the approval of changes to the URA Masterplan 2014. Contract DE133 for the Design and Construction of Sengkang West Bus Depot was published on 3 May 2018. The multi-story depot is designed for handling roughly 600 buses and will be equipped with parking spaces, refuelling and washing facilities, repair and maintenance facilities, and administrative offices to support day-to-day bus operations.

On 25 Jun 2019, the contract was awarded to Santarli Construction Pte Ltd-Zheng Keng Engineering & Construction Pte Ltd Joint Venture at a sum of SGD $202,120,000.

The bus package allocated to Sengkang West Bus Depot remains to be confirmed, but given its location, it will very likely be allocated to Sengkang–Hougang Bus Package and as a replacement for Hougang Bus Depot. The route package was scheduled for contract renewal in 2021, which falls short of the depot’s expected completion date of 2023. However, in October 2021, the negotiated contract with SBS Transit was revealed to be extended by 3 years till 2024.

When completed, Sengkang West Bus Depot will be the third multi-storey bus depot in Singapore after Woodlands Bus Depot and Soon Lee Bus Depot.

Delayed Opening

Due to the Circuit Breaker and phased re-opening since April 2020, the completion of Sengkang West Bus Depot was delayed from 2023 to 2024 as mentioned by Minister for Transport Ong Ye Kung in a written reply to a Parliamentary Question posed in October 2020.

Bus Captain Dormitory

As part of the Ministry of Transport’s Financial Year 2019 Expenditure Estimates, an item for “Independent Multi-Storey Bus Depot-cum-Dormitory at Sengkang West” was listed. In response to a media query by Lianhe Zaobao, an LTA spokesperson mentioned that the proposed dormitory for Bus Captains would be built as part of the construction of Sengkang West Bus Depot, to maximise land use and reduce travelling time to and from the Bus Depot for Bus Captains.

It remains to be confirmed if the dormitory will be integrated within the Bus Depot building, or as a separate building in the vicinity of the Bus Depot.

Operational History:

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Gallery:

Construction Progress:

External Links & References:

• Tender information | Land Transport Authority
• Ministry of Transport FY 2019 Expenditure Estimates – Singapore Budget 2019
• 方便外籍车长上下班 盛港西多层巴士车厂将附员工宿舍 – Lianhe Zaobao
• Written Reply by Minister for Transport Ong Ye Kung to Parliamentary Question on Progress of Construction of New Bus Depot Near Seletar West Farmway and Plans to Improve Bus Services in Fernvale – Ministry of Transport
• Jury still out on Singapore’s bus contracting model, five years on – The Straits Times

See Also:

• Bus Depots and Bus Parks
• Bus Contracting Model